If you own a funeral home, if you’re hiring this year, or if you’ve ever asked who is actually graduating from mortuary school in 2026 and what they want from you, this latest episode of Johnson Consulting Conversations was made for you.
I had the honor of welcoming Leili McMurrough, President and Program Director of Worsham College of Mortuary Science in Wheeling, Illinois. Worsham is one of the oldest and most respected mortuary science programs in the country, educating funeral directors and embalmers since 1911. Leili has been leading Worsham since 2016, and she sits in a seat very few people in our profession hold, she gets to see the next generation of funeral directors long before they ever walk through your door.
If you’re picturing the mortuary student you were twenty or thirty years ago, set that picture down. Leili shared that today, roughly 90 percent of Worsham students are first-generation funeral service with no family ties to the profession at all. She also confirmed what anyone walking into a mortuary classroom can see: Worsham classes are now running close to 80 percent women, and the national average is 75 percent. Many of those women are balancing work, families, and school at the same time.
There is no longer a “typical” student. Some come straight out of high school. Some are are over 50 years of age. Many are second-career adults leaving entire industries because they want work that has meaning. Many second-career students have been dreaming of being a funeral director at some point in their life.
Years ago, the first question Leili heard from students was, “What does this job pay?” That is no longer the opening question. Pay still matters, and graduates need a livable wage. But what they are prioritizing now is mentorship, culture, and schedule.
She shared a story about one of her top students who came into her office recently. The student wasn’t asking about salary. She was asking where she could land an apprenticeship that would teach her every aspect of the business. That is the question being asked more and more at Worsham: Will you teach me? Will I have a future here? Will anyone care if I burn out?
If your funeral home cannot articulate your culture, your values, and your non-negotiables, you will struggle to attract these graduates and to keep them when the work gets hard.
What does a Worsham graduate actually know on their first day at the funeral home? Leili was honest with us. They walk in with a strong foundation that includes the vocabulary of the profession, legal and ethical responsibilities, the basics of embalming and restorative art, OSHA and FTC compliance, and the importance of documentation, identification, and chain of custody.
Leili emphasized that day one is still day one. They are graduates, not seasoned directors. They should not be expected to walk into every arrangement conference, prep room case, or family conflict with the judgment of someone who has been doing this for twenty years. Education builds the foundation. The funeral home turns that foundation into professional practice.
The single biggest gap Leili sees is not knowledge. It is confidence in real-time judgment, and that only develops when a graduate is standing in your funeral home with a real family, a real body, a real timeline, and real pressure.
Leili was clear that mentorship is not handholding, and it is not simply “follow me around.” It is the conversation that happens after the family walks out. Why did you position yourself at the door that way? Why is the visitation room set up like this? Mentorship is structured and feedback needs to be detailed. Graduates should know who they report to, what they are expected to learn in the first 30, 60, and 90 days, and how feedback will be delivered before something becomes a habit or a crisis.
She also reminded us to be curious when a new graduate says, “That’s not how I was taught.” That is a teaching moment, not a moment to dismiss them. It’s easy to respond with “Well, it’s not done that way here.” Take the the time to learn what they were taught and then share your process.
We talked candidly about money. Most graduates come in with very little exposure to how a business actually runs. Many have never seen a check. When they see a $10,000 funeral, they may have no concept of the air conditioning, vehicle fuel, contracts, and ongoing expenses flowing right back out. Bring them into the conversation. Help them understand the why behind the numbers, and coach them on how to ask families for payment.
On work-life balance, Leili’s advice was simple: be honest. Explain your on-call rotation clearly. Tell them what support exists after a hard case, what the boundaries are, and whether the schedule is equitable. Graduates are not afraid of hard work. They want to know you have actually thought about how the work affects your people.
On advancement, Leili offered an important caution: don’t promise ownership in an interview. Some graduates dream of one day owning their firm, and some do not. Instead, paint a clear picture of what growth looks like at your firm and how someone moves from apprentice to licensed director to manager, and what continuing education and leadership opportunities are available. Younger professionals stay when they can see a future.
Leili also shared exciting updates from Worsham, including a new state-of-the-art embalming lab and crematory, both designed to close the gap between learning about the work and doing the work. She highlighted Worsham’s 95-year partnership with the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. Students also experience Jewish and Catholic funeral traditions, military flag folding, transfer labs, and professional development days covering everything from grief counseling to therapy dog programs.
Save the date for Wednesday, June 24th, when I’ll be joined by Andrew Kennedy, Vice President of Funeral Home and Cemetery Lending at Live Oak Bank, for our next Johnson Consulting Conversation.
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